Dark amber beer, small head, rye, fruit, taste is the same, bitter, dry, not bad.

27 April 2019. At Zythos Bierfestival. Deputy Taster: Anke. Cheers to Ama Deke, Erwin, John & Meeki! Hazy orange, lasting, small, frothy, off-white head. Aroma of orange peel, mellow mango, grapefruit, breadcrust, pepper, onion, herbs. Taste is light to medium fruity sweet, orange & mango on a doughy malty base with a citric sour touch, vaguely sulphuric retronasally but not too disturbing; rye-like & grapefruity bitter tones lead to a piney hoppy finish where onion and grapefruit peel linger, some mellow fruit & pepper too. Medium body, oily texture, fizzy carbonation. Firm American IPA, a bit on the harsh side perhaps but who wants a compromise nowadays?

Copper colour with light haze. Aroma and flavour have decent malt presence. Aftertaste gets pleasantly dry. Added body from the rye. Nice session beer.

Collaboration of Vliegende Paard near Brugge with Totem near Ghent, apparently a red rye ale inspired by the American strong ale style (think Stone’s Arrogant Bastard and the like), tasted at Maldegems Bierfestival. Yellow-white, thick and mousy, bit irregularly-edged but stable head, misty deep peach blonde with rosy to pale orangey tinge – though not quite what I would interpret as ‘red’ in a beer. Indeed very ‘American’ aroma, with a strong New World hop streak: pink grapefruit, paprika, persimmon, Thai basil, biscuit, dried mango, pine resin, some soggy bread in the background, orange zest. Sweetish onset, mango and guava, with immediate citric ‘fraîcheur’, medium carbonated with some minerally ‘stings’ not interfering with a smooth, oily body. Lovely biscuity, bit peanutty maltiness, sweet with a very soft toasty edge, but quickly soaked in zesty, oily, citrusy and somewhat piney hoppiness, establishing a long, spicy, drying finish which also lets enough juicy ‘biscuitiness’ from the malts pass through. Refreshing, expressive, citrusy and vibrant, this is a kind of old school American amber ale much more than anything else, leaning towards red IPA perhaps, but certainly not a Irish red as announced above (inasmuch as Irish red can genuinely be considered a beer style in its own right…).

sample @ Bruges Beer Festival 2019 day 2. F: big, tan, average retention. C: amber, hazy. A: malty, fruity, caramel, bready, bit biscuits. T: malty backbone, caramel, spicy, orange, light tropical fruits, medium body and carbonation, enjoyable.